Celebration gift-wrapped just for you

The maestro might be gone, but the show will go on.

What’s often considered the region’s biggest holiday bash — yes, even more cherished than the Fourth of July celebration — will unfold in spectacular fashion late this afternoon, just like it does every year.

But when the switch is flipped and one and a half million lights burst into life, one will remain dark. Duane B. Hagadone, the benefactor behind the lighting celebration and fireworks display, died last April. Together with his former Hagadone Hospitality partner, Jerry Jaeger, Duane conjured up a Christmas season kickoff that is consistently rated one of the very best in America.

More to the point, it is a shining star that virtually everyone in the community can point to with one hand while holding a lighted candle in the other.

Today marks the joyous advent of the holiday season, so we will not linger and lament upon the seat at the head of the table that shall remain empty. Instead, as Duane would certainly wish, we’ll look ahead to continuing his sensational legacy.

The gift from the Hagadone family now passes from Duane’s hands to those of his sons, Brad and Todd. And from theirs to yours.

When The Coeur d’Alene Resort’s massive land illumination is briefly exceeded by an ear-splitting, awe-inspiring aerial assault — one of the most intense fireworks displays you’ll ever experience — it will be thanks to Brad and Todd Hagadone, an early Christmas present to the community they love.

But when Lori Lougheed leads thousands of happy holiday revelers in the countdown this evening, you can bet that Duane’s sons will be thinking of their dad and how much this day meant to him.

So, from Brad and Todd to all of you: Let’s get the party started!